Battery powered electric lantern

ABSTRACT

An electric lantern has a case in two portions which may be opened to permit replacement of batteries without disengagement of the other components from the upper portion of the case. Means are provided to retain the lamp and upper portion of the battery case as retained members of a structurally engaged assembly which may be disengaged from the lower portion of the battery case. As a separate feature, a lens may be disengaged from the battery case to permit replacement of the electric lamp without opening the battery case. A rod is used as a member of the engagement means which hold the lantern components together; in addition, the rod may be part of the lantern&#39;&#39;s electrical circuit. The electrical circuit may be designed so that it is opened when the battery case is opened and/or when the lens is disengaged from the battery case.

nite States Patent Oakley et al. I

Oct. 23, E973 BATTERY POWERED ELECTRIC LANTERN [57] ABSTRACT [75]inventors: Daniel C. Oakley, Madison; Ralph An electric lantern has acase in two portions which T. Jacobsen, Stoughton; Harley J. may beopened to permit replacement of batteries Van De Loo, Verona, all ofWis. without disengagement of the other components from [73! Assignee:ESB Incorporated, Philadelphia, the .upper porno" of the case Means areprovided to P retain the lamp and upper portion of the battery case asretained members of a structurally engaged asseml Filed! 13, 1972 blywhich may be disengaged from the lower portion [21] AppL NO: 306,144 ofthe battery case. As a separate feature, a lens may be disengaged fromthe battery case to permit replacement of the electric lamp withoutopening the battery U-S. CL t case A rod is used as a member of theengagement Int- Cl. v means the lantern components together; in

of Search; R, addition the rod may be part of the lanterns electri-240/38 cal circuit. The electrical circuit may be designed so that it isopened when the battery case is opened and- [56] References Cited /orwhen the lens is disengaged from the battery case.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,533,9l 12/1950 Barr 240/l0.63

1219 2 l ..24010.63 2'623 158 5 Crumrme at a 14 Claims, Drawing FiguresPrimary ExaminerSamuel S. Matthews Assistant Examiner-Michael L. GellnerAttorney-Raymond L. Balfour 81 I I i If] 54 60 s2 5% k l k\ \q 14 42 l l38 J to BC PMENIHlumzs 1915 T3. 767,91 1

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SHEET 30F 8 I cs0 T 58 5Q 25 0 Ewe 54 16,, I 5CD Pmmmnmza ms 3. 767 91 lSHEET 5 OF 8 til sis-(i911 PATENTEU UN 2 3 I973 SHEET 80F 8 BATTERYPOWERED ELECTRIC LANTERN BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION To the campers,hikers, hunters and others who use battery powered electric lanterns, itis important to be able to open the lantern to replace consumedbatteries or lamps with a minimum of effort and time. It is alsoimportant that the lantern be designed to be opened so that a minimumnumber of parts or subassemblies are disengaged, for there is always thedanger of losing or misplacing one of the parts while the batteries orlamp is being replaced. Finally, it is desirable to design the lanternso that its usercannot accidentally receive an electrical shock in theprocess of trying to-replace the batteries or lamps.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The lantern of this invention includes abattery case which contains at least one battery, with the case itselfcomprising an upper portion and a lower portion. Means are provided forpermitting the upper and lower portions of the battery case to beengaged and disengaged. A rod secured to the upper-portion of thebattery case may be used as a component of this battery case engagementmeans.

Responsive to the needs of campers and other users, the lantern may beprovided with engagement means for retaining the lamp and upper portionof thebattery case as members of a structurally engaged assembly whichis held together while the upper and lower portions of the battery caseare disengaged from each other. The lantern may also be designed so thata lens surrounding the lamp can be disengaged from the battery casewhile the upper and lower portions of the battery case remain engagedtogether. Thus the danger of having parts scattered and possibly lost isminimized when the camper needs to open the lantern to replace batteriesor a lamp. In certain embodiments the rod comprises a member oftheeng'agement means which secure the lens to the upper portion of thebattery case.

The rod is included as a component of the electrical circuit in certainembodiments of the lantern. As a safety feature the circuit may bedesigned to be opened when the upper and'lower portions of the batterycase are disengaged from each other and/or when the lens is disengagedfrom the battery case.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of afully assembled battery powered electric lantern containing. thefeatures of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded view of the lantern appearing in FIG. 1,showing the lens andhood disengaged from the battery case while theupper and lower portions of the battery case are engaged together.

FIG. 3 is a partially exploded view of the lantern appearing in FIG. 1,showing the upper and lower portions of the battery case disengaged fromeach other while the lens and hood engagement means retain the upperportion of the case, thelens, and the hood in engagement with eachother. p

FIG. 4 is a section of the lantern appearing in FIG. 1, with batteriesremoved.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the electrical components of thelantern appearing in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is an electrical circuitry diagram of the lantern appearing inFIGS. 1 and 5.

FIG. 7 is an elevational view of another battery powered electriclantern containing features of this invention.

FIG. 8 is a section of the lantern appearing in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a front elevational view of another battery powered electriclantern containing features of this invention.

FIG. 10 is a side elevational view of the lantern appearing in FIG. 9.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The invention will first beexplained and illustrated by references to one particular model of thebattery powered electric lantern, the model appearing in FIGS. 1-6.Later two other models containing features of the invention (shown inFIGS. 7 and 8' and FIGS. 9 and 10, respectively) will be described.

FIGS. 1-4 illustrate a battery powered electric lantern 10 having a case12 comprising an upper portion 14 and a lower portion 16 whose surfacescomplement each other and mate together in a predetermined manner. Thewalls of the case 12 define a space inside the case for housing at leastone battery 18 (four such batteries 18 are shown in FIG. 3). The lantern10 includes a rod 20 which extends from the interior to the exterior ofthe battery case 12. Other components of the lantern include atransparent lens 22 fitted into a groove 23 near the top of the uppercase portion 14, at least one electrical lamp 24 (two such lamps 24, 24L and 24 R, are shown in FIGS. l-4) inside the lens 22, a hood 26 whichfits snugly over the top of the lens 22 and which may be provided with ahandle 28 for easycarrying, and an electrical circuit connecting thebatteries 18 with the lamps 24.

The lantern 10 is provided with battery case engage ment means forpermitting the upper and lower portions of the battery case to beengaged and disengaged. While these battery case engagement means mayinclude such items as clasps or buckles (not shown in the drawings),they preferably include the rod 20 in a manner to be described below.Therodmay also be a component of engagement means which retain the lamps24 and the upper portion of the battery case together as members of astructurally engaged assembly when the upper and lower portions of thebattery case are disengaged from each other. The lantern 10 also hasmeans which allow the lens 22 to be disengaged from the battery case 12so that the lamps 24 may be replaced without opening the battery case(see FIG. 2), and the rod 20 may be included in these means. The lanternI0 is also provided with lens and upper battery case engagement meansfor retaining the lens 22 upper portion 14 of the battery case 12 asmembers of a structurally engaged assembly 29 (see FIG. 3) while theupper and lower portions of the battery case 12 are disengaged to permitbattery replacement; the rod 20 is included in these means.

These several engagement means are illustrated in FIGS. 24, particularlyFIG. 4 The threaded lower end of the rod 20 is screwed into a threadedmember 30 secured in a fixed position to the lower case portion 16.Extending upward from this threaded member 30, the rod 20 passes firstthrough an opening 32 in a disc 34 and then through an opening 36 at thetop of the upper case portion 14. Means such as retainer rings 38 and 40are fixed with respect to the rod 20 and are secured to and bear againstthe top and bottom surfaces 42 and 44, respectively, of a dependingprojection 46 of the disc 34, while additional retainer means 48 aresecured to and fixed with respect to the rod just above the opening 36in the upper case portion 14; collectively these means 38, 40 and 48cooperate with the rod 20, the disc 34, and the upper case portion 14 insuch a manner that the disc is structurally engaged with and drawnsnugly against the inner surface of a shoulder 50 of the upper caseportion 14 while the rod may be rotated but not moved vertically withrespect to the disc 34 and upper case portion 14. Projecting furtherabove the battery case, the rod 20 extends upward through the lens andout through an opening 52 of the hood 26. The hood 26 has a shoulder 54which structurally engages the upper edge of the lens 22. A knob 56,which is provided with a centrally located opening 58 ofa generallyrectangular configuration and size matching that of the upper end of rod20, fits over and engages the upper end of rod 20 so that a rotation ofthe knob 56 produces a simultaneous rotation of the rod 20. A securingdevice such as a closed nut 60 is screwed onto the upper extremity ofthe rod 20 and prevents removal of the knob 56 from the rod 20 withoutprior detachment of the nut 60. The knob 56 and the rod 20 may berotated with respect to the opening 52 of the hood 26. By causing thenut 60 to bear snugly against the top of the knob 56, the knob 56 bearssnugly against the top of the hood 26 which in turn bears against theupper edge of the lens 22, which causes the lower edge of the lens 22 tobear against the upper case portion 14. As shown in FIG. 2 and asdescribed above, by simply unscrewing the nut 60 and lifting upward onthe knob 56, hood 26, and lens 22, the electric lamps 24 may be exposedand replaced without rotating the rod and disengaging the upper andlower portions of the battery case.

A proper rotation of the knob and the rod causes the upper and lowerportions 14 and 16 of the battery case 12 to be drawn together at theirmating surfaces; a rotation of the knob 56 in the opposite directionwill cause the two portions of the battery case to become disengagedwhile the hood, lens, and upper portion of the battery case remainengaged as members of assembly 29. As shown in FIG. 3 and as describedabove, it will be seen that the structurally engaged assembly 29 may beengaged with or disengaged from the lower portion 16 of the battery case12 to permit battery replacement by simply rotating the knob 56 whilethe nut 60 remains threaded onto the top of the rod 20.

The electrical components and circuitry for the lantern shown in FIGS.1-4, which utilizes lamps 24, are illustrated in FIGS. and 6. Mountedonto the lower surface of disc 34 (not shown in FIG. 5) are fourconductive members 62 which make contact with the terminals of thebatteries 18 and connect the batteries when the upper and lower portionsof the battery case 12 are in engagement with each other. With thisfeature the electrical circuit between the batteries and the lamps isopened when the lower portion of the battery case is disengaged from theupper portion of the case. A pair of conductive wires 64 connect theterminals of the batteries with an inverter 68 situated inside the uppercase portion 14 above the disc 34 where the electrical energy isconverted from DC to high voltage AC. The circuitry of the lamp includesa pair of switches 72 and 74, shown in FIGS. 1-5, with the switch 72having three positions (off, 1 lamp, and 2 lamps," as

shown in FIG. 5) and the switch 74 having two positions (bright" anddim). (In FIG. 4 the switches 72 and 74 have been rotated to appear inprofile at the left, rather than being shown as required by a trueorthographic projection.) With switch 72 in the off" position, theinverter is de-energized and no electrical energy reaches either lamp.With switch 72 in the l lamp position, electrical energy flows from theinverter through a conductive wire 76 to and through conductive, springbiased contact 78 in contact with the base of lamp 24 L to and through aconductor 80 secured to a disc 81 situated ,at the top of and inside thelens 22 (as shown in FIG. 4) which conductor is biased against and incontact with metal rod 20; from the conductor 80 to the rod 20; and fromthe rod 20 via a biased metal conductor 82 (mounted atop disc 34) and aconductive wire 84 back to the inverter. Thus it can be seen that therod is included in the lanterns electrical circuit. With switch 72 inthe 2 lamp position, electrical energy from the inverter flows upthrough lamp 24 L, across conductor 80 and rod 20 to another conductor(also biased against and in contact with rod 20), and down through lamp24 R.

Another feature which may be included in the lanterns electrical circuitas a safety feature is a switch 88, shown in FIG. 2, located near thetop of the upper case portion 14 in a position directly beneath thelower edge of the lens 22. The lantern is constructed so that the lens22 closes the switch 88 and the lanterns electrical circuit when thelens 22 is in engagement with the upper portion of the battery case, butthe electrical circuit is opened when the lens 22 and the hood 26 aredisengaged from the battery case. This safety feature prevents a personfrom getting a shock from the lanterns power source while changing lamps24.

Many details of the lantern described above can be varied withoutdeparting from all aspects of the present invention. The use ofaprotective lens around the lamp can be excluded if desired. A hood isalso optional, with the one shown and described above being for purposesof protection as well as a component of the lens and upper battery caseengagement means; these functions can either be excluded altogether orbuilt into the lens if desired. A wide variety of electrical circuitscan be designed for use in the lantern, not all of which include the rodas a component of the circuitry. The details shown in the drawings anddescribed above are merely illustrative ofa preferred embodiment of theinvention; many other embodiments are also possible.

Another model of lantern containing embodiments of this invention isshown in FIGS. 7 and 8. That lantern is in many respects constructedsimilarly to the lantern 100 shown in FIGS. 1-6, and corresponding partsof lanterns 100 and 10 will be identified with character numbers havingthe same last two digits, e.g., battery case 12 having upper and lowerportions 14 and 16, respectively, of lantern 10 correspond and aresubstantially identical with battery case 112 having upper and lowerportions 114 and 116, respectively, of lantern 100. The absence of suchcorrespondence in character numbers between parts of lanterns 10 and 100may generally be taken to mean that there are not corresponding parts orfunctions in the two lanterns. Only the significant differences betweenthe two lanterns will be described in the following discussion oflantern 100.

Lantern 100 has a lens 122, a lamp 124, and a hood 126 which aregenerally circular in configuration. The

lamp 124 is situated in the enclosed space defined by the matingtransparent lens 122 and opaque hood 126. The lantern 100 is Constructedso that when the closed nut 160 is unscrewed from the threaded top ofthe rod 120 and the knob 156 is removed, the lens 122, the lamp 124, andthe hood 126 may be lifted up and removed as a single illuminating unit129. The handle 128 attached to the top of the hood 126 may act both asa carrying handle for the fully assembled lantern and as a hanger topermit the illuminating unit 129 to be held by hand orto be hung orsuspended from a hook at the top of a tent, trailer, or cabin. The wires176 carrying current to the lamp 124 are purposely made relatively longso that the distance between the illuminating unit 129 and the remainderof the lantern can be made great; for instance, the illuminating unit129 may be hung at the top of a tent or cabin while'the remainder of thelantern rests on the ground or floor. These wires 176 may be coiled andstored inside the opaque, generally cylindrical sleeve 125(corresponding in position but not in function to the lens 122 oflantern which is positioned between the illuminating unit 129 and thebattery case 112.

The electrical circuitry of lantern 100 may be made somewhat simplerthan the circuitry of lantern 10. Since there is one lamp 124 ratherthantwo as in lantern 10, the lantern 100 may use only a single switch 173having, if desired, three positions, off, bright, and dim." The rod 120is .not used as a component of the electrical circuitry in lantern 100.In the same manner as with lantern l0, lantern 100 is designed so thatby rotating knob 156 (which produces a rotation of rod 120) the hood126, the lamp 224, the lens 122, the cylindrical sleeve 125, and theupper battery case portion 114 may be retained as a structurally engagedassembly while the upper and lower portions of the battery case 112 aredisen'aged'from each other; when this occurs the conductive members 162(not shown in FIGS. 7 and 8; see corresponding parts 62 in FIG. 5) aredisengaged from the terminals of the batteries and the electricalcircuit between the'batteries and the lamp 124 is opened. i

Still another model of lantern containing embodiments of this inventionis shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. That lantern 200 is in many respectsconstructed simi larly to the lanterns 10 and 100 shown in FIGS. I-6 and7-8, respectively, and where correspondence in parts and functionexists, the parts of lantern 200 will be identified with characternumbers having the same last two digits as the corresponding parts inlanterns l0 and 100. The discussion of lantern 200 to follow below willfocus primarily on the features which are found in lantern 200 but notin the other models and on the differences between lantern 200 andlanterns 10 and/or 100. Lantern 200 has an illuminating unit 229 similarin most respects to the corresponding unit 129 of lantern 100. That unit229 comprises a lamp 224 situated in the enclosed space defined by themating transparent lens 222 and opaque hood 226, with the unit 229 beingprovided with a carrying handle 228. Unlike the corresponding unit 129of lantern 100, the illuminating unit FIG. 9 as being enclosed inside atransparent plastic film 277 which is fitted tightly around one of thearms 275.

Referring to the specific illuminating unit 229 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10,the area inside the circular lens 222 and lamp 224 is provided with amirror 231 to permit a camper to see while shaving, pinning up hair,etc.; alternatively, this area may be left unoccupied or may be equippedwith electrical appliances such as radios, fans, insect sprayers, etc.,which also draw power from the lanterns batteries.

Except for-the differences noted above, the lantern 200 is substantiallyidentical in construction with lantern 100. Lantern 200 may use only asingle switch 273 having, if desired, three positions, off, bright," anddim. The rod 220 (not shown in FIGS. 9 and 10) which extendsfrom theinterior to the exterior of. the battery case 212 is not used asacomponent of the electrical circuitry in lantern 200. Lantern 200 isdesigned so that by rotating knob 256 (which produces a rotation ofrod220) the hood 226, the lamp 224, the lens 222, the arms 275, and theupper battery case portion 214 may be retained as structurally engagedassembly while the upper and lower portions of the battery case 212 aredisengaged from each other; when this occurs the conductive members 262(not shown in FIGS. 9 and 10; see corresponding parts 62 in FIG. 5) aredisengaged from the terminals of the batteries and the electricalcircuit between the batteries and the lamp is opened.

One final difference between lantern 200 and lanterns 10 and since thereis no need to remove the knob 256 to permit replacement of the lamps (asin lantern 10) or to remove the illuminating unit (as in lantern 100)there is no need to have a detachable securing device such as a closednut (item 60 in lantern 10, item in lantern'100). The lantern 200 istherefore provided with a securing device 261 which is permanentlyaffixed to the top of rod 220 to prevent removal of knob 256. Knob 256,therefore, may be rotated to produce a rotation of rod 220, but itmaynot be lifted off of rod 220. 1

Having explained our invention, we claim:

1. A battery powered electric lantern comprising the combination of:

a. a battery case, the case comprising an upper portion and a lowerportion and defining a space inside the case for housing at least onebattery;

b. battery case engagement means for permitting the upper and lowerportions of the battery case to be engaged and disengaged, the batterycase engagement means comprising i. a rod secured to the upper portionof the case and extending into the interior of the case, and, ii. meanssecured to the lower portion of the case and engaging the rod inside thecase;

c. at least one battery inside the case;

d. at least one electric lamp;

e. lamp and upper battery case engagement means for retaining the lampand upper portion of the battery case together as members of astructurally engaged assembly when the upper and lower portions of thebattery case are disengaged from each other;

and,

f. an electrical circuit connecting the battery with the lamp.

2. The lantern of claim 1 in combination with a lens surrounding thelamp, the lantern being further described as having means including therod for engaging the lens with the upper portion of the case as astructurally engaged assembly when the upper and lower portions of thebattery case are disengaged from each other.

3. The lantern of claim 2 in which the rod comprises a member of thelamp and upper battery case engagement means.

4. The lantern of claim 3 in which the electrical circuit includes therod.

5. The lantern of claim 2 in which the electrical circuit includes therod.

6. The lantern of claim 5 in which the electrical circuit between thebattery and the lamp is opened when the lower portion of the batterycase is disengaged from the upper portion of the case.

7. The lantern of claim 2 in which the electrical circuit between thebattery and the lamp is opened when the lower portion of the batterycase is disengaged from the upper portion of the case.

8. The lantern of claim 2 in which the electrical circuit includes aswitch which closes the circuit when the lens is in engagement with theupper portion of the case and opens the circuit when the lens is not inengagement with the upper portion of the case.

9. The lantern of claim 2 in which the electrical circuit includes aswitch which closes the circuit when the lens is in engagement with theupper portion of the case and opens the circuit when the lens is not inengagement with the upper portion of the case.

10. The lantern of claim 1 in which the rod comprises a member of thelamp and upper battery engagement means.

11. The lantern of claim 10 in which the electrical circuit includes therod.

12. The lantern of claim 1 in which the electrical circuit includes therod.

13. The lantern of claim 12 in which the electrical circuit between thebattery and the lamp is opened when the lower portion of the batterycase is disengaged from the upper portion of the case.

14. The lantern of claim 1 in which the electrical circuit between thebattery and the lamp is opened when the lower portion of the batterycase is disengaged from the upper portion of the case.

1. A battery powered electric lantern comprising the combination of: a.a battery case, the case comprising an upper portion and a lower portionand defining a space inside the case for housing at least one battery;b. battery case engagement means for permitting the upper and lowerportions of the battery case to be engaged and disengaged, the batterycase engagement means comprising i. a rod secured to the upper portionof the case and extending into the interior of the case, and, ii. meanssecured to the lower portion of the case and engaging the rod inside thecase; c. at least one battery inside the case; d. at least one electriclamp; e. lamp and upper battery case engagement means for retaining thelamp and upper portion of the battery case together as members of astructurally engaged assembly when the upper and lower portions of thebattery case are disengaged from each other; and, f. an electricalcircuit connecting the battery with the lamp.
 2. The lantern of claim 1in combination with a lens surrounding the lamp, the lantern beingfurther described as having means including the rod for engaging thelens with the upper portion of the case as a structurally engagedassembly when the upper and lower portions of the battery case aredisengaged from each other.
 3. The lantern of claim 2 in which the rodcomprises a member of the lamp and upper battery case engagement means.4. The lantern of claim 3 in which the electrical circuit includes therod.
 5. The lantern of claim 2 in which the electrical circuit includesthe rod.
 6. The lantern of claim 5 in which the electrical circuitbetween the battery and the lamp is opened when the lower portion of thebattery case is disengaged from the upper portion of the case.
 7. Thelantern of claim 2 in which the electrical circuit between the batteryand the lamp is opened when the lower portion of the battery case isdisengaged from the upper portion of the case.
 8. The lantern of claim 2in which the electrical circuit includes a switch which closes thecircuit when the lens is in engagement with the upper portion of thecase and opens the circuit when the lens is not in engagement with theupper portion of the case.
 9. The lantern of claim 2 in which theelectrical circuit includes a switch which closes the circuit when thelens is in engagement with the upper portion of the case and opens thecircuit when the lens is not in engagement with the upper portion of thecase.
 10. The lantern of claim 1 in which the rod comprises a member ofthe lamp and upper battery engagement means.
 11. The lantern of claim 10in which the electrical circuit includes the rod.
 12. The lantern ofclaim 1 in which the electrical circuit includes the rod.
 13. Thelantern of claim 12 in which the electrical circuit between the batteryand the lamp is opened when the lower portion of the battery case isdisengaged from the upper portion of the case.
 14. The lantern of claim1 in which the electrical circuit between the battery and the lamp isopened when the lower portion of the battery case is disengaged from theupper portion of the case.